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All Yard…All. The. Time.

Sometimes, I still have to pinch myself that I live here. This is the home I grew up in. This is the yard I helped care for and play in when I was the ages of my current children. I’ve enjoyed many homes in the past 24 years, but none with yards the size of this. It really is all yard, all the time. I’m excited to have gotten to some pretty big clean up and improvement projects this year, they seem never ending, but for the first time I can see progress toward the bigger goals and it makes me happy! Our goal is to eventually get this yard more manageable, sprinkler system, less weeding…a lot less weeding. For now, it’s baby steps – finding borders, developing a lawn, cleaning neglected corners, organizing, and letting the beauty and character, it already possesses, shine through.

As I’m delinquent on posting as I’ve been going, here’s some pictures to catch me up.

The best part of spring for Jaimee this year was dirt. The second best part has been her new sun hat and playing with wind chimes and flowers.

The hardest part of the spring for me has been the weeding. Lots and lots and lots of loads of weeds to the dump pile and lots and lots and lots of places that were overgrown getting groomed and ready for planting. This is the first year I’ve really begun to dabble in weed killers and inhibiters. I think in short order, I will feel like an expert. I’d like to think you wouldn’t need any, but it’s the only way to stay on top of this much land and work, especially with my primary crew being me, myself and I.

But the hard work is paying off. Some of these before and after photos really show how much work has been done!

Some of the bigger projects have included getting some old, over run, flower beds removed and smoothed with new grass seed planted. Getting the old wood pile/burning barrel corner cleared and seeing grass grow is an incredible improvement! I’m also trying a few different things this year with the garden. I’m being more deliberate in my planting and I’m trying some new tactics. The first is organizing the space using weed tarp for paths and walkways. This accomplishes both the task of cutting down on weeding and making the garden space more manageable. The second new thing for me was making my own seed tape. I’m hoping it will cut down on the immediate weeds around the seedlings as well as boost their ability to get started. I hope these things pay off!

The promise of beauty and green yet to come keep me going when I get weary of work!

Finding the deck makes being outside so enjoyable. And getting a few beds replenished with new bark really make a big difference. Long term, I think I’d like some bigger islands to break up all the large grass areas and have less to mow, but for now the budget clearly says mow.

The garden seedlings are just starting to sprout (wish they were a solo act and the weeds wouldn’t!). It’s about time to fertilize the lawn again and in a few more weeks the newly seeded grass areas will be ready to mow. I can’t believe we just started the month of June.